Texas girls

NeverendingJen

NeverendingJen

Active member
We're getting ready for our big move and I'm trying to make a list of fun places in texas to check out our first year there, and get an idea of places to stop while driving(we're taking I-10W the entire way pretty much). I'd love to hear suggestions from you on places we need to see!
 
I really like San Antonio. It has a really neat river walk with lots of dining options and shopping places... Plus, they have a Sea World.

You are going to be really close (3 1/2 hours) from Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico which has some really, really awesome caverns that we visited once for a family vacation. I was just telling Colby the other day that we needed to make a weekend trip down there.

Roswell, NM is just a little bit further and kinda neat to go see all the alien stuff. We drove through there one time and I noticed that the McDonalds is shaped like a space ship.

Best of all, El Paso is only 349 miles from my parents lake house. :)
 
Do yourself a favor and try NOT to hit Houston during rush hour. I-10 is a nightmare. Rush hour being probably 6am-930am and 430pm-630pm (or longer). It's my hometown, and I love it (great museums and arts)...but traffic is awful.
 
pewtertm said:
Do yourself a favor and try NOT to hit Houston during rush hour. I-10 is a nightmare. Rush hour being probably 6am-930am and 430pm-630pm (or longer). It's my hometown, and I love it (great museums and arts)...but traffic is awful.
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This! I'm in Austin and from San Antonio (though we're about to make our big move to Raleigh NC area- funny!) Both towns are great and full of things to see and do. :)
 
What kinds of things do your kids like to do? I think the San Antonio Zoo is one of the best I've been to (not that I've seen a ton :p) and there are several caves nearby (http://www.naturalbridgecaverns.com, http://www.cavewithoutaname.com/). There is a lot to do downtown, the Alamo and the river walk.

It's sad when you've lived in a city almost your whole life and you really can't think of fun things to do!

Houston has a lot too. I hear they have a really great children's museum (we tried to go but changed our mind when we couldn't find parking on a Sat!). NASA was really fun!
 
I'm chiming in cause I'm a Texas girl...but I didn't even know where I-10 was to help you out. I about 5.5 hours north of Houston. That's one thing about Texas, you can drive for what feels like forever and never leave the state. :)

As far as El Paso, I've never been there or anywhere near it at all. However, I've always thought it would be cool to go to the Rio Grande and Big Bend NP. So, if you go, tell me all about it and take lots of pictures. Okay? :D

We love San Antonio and have vacationed there a lot over the years. We love Sea World and the River Walk. Every time we go to the Alamo, we are surprised at how small it is.

Good luck on your drive and move!! :D
 
We live in Houston...here are my suggestions:

Texas Hill Country
Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels- huge super fun water park! Check out Gruene Hall, Natural bridge caverns, outlet malls ect.
Texas State Fair- Dallas Area
South Padre Island
Houston- space center houston, galveston, museums, parks, Houston Livestock show and rodeo.
San Antonio- Fiesta Tx, Seaworld, Riverwalk, Alamo
There is a place in north tx that has dinosaur tracks (I can't remember the state park name right now) it is good for camping

Oh I forgot! On the way west, check out Buckees! Its a gas station/store/restaurant on the way to San Antonio. They have tons of restrooms and are a Texas must stop location when driving from city to city.

When you cross into Tx from LA, I assume that is the direction you are coming from, stop at the tourism rest stop. They have everything you will need to plan trips in the state.
 
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Are you moving to El Paso? Im in Austin which is not off I-10 but San Antonio is and you should definitely stop and go to the Riverwalk! Eat some yummy Mexican food and have a margarita. :) San Antonio also has Fiesta Texas and Sea World. Oh they have a zoo too but I haven't been to the San Antonio zoo in like 15 years.

A little outside of San Antonio is New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn waterpark is a lot of fun!

Austin doesn't have the huge major attractions like Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio does but it is still a great town! If you like live music then its the place to be- although Im not into that so cant really recommend any places to go other than say head downtown to 6th street to check out the bar scene. Austin has the Bob Bullock History Museum, The State Capitol, Zilker Park and Barton Springs Pool (a natural spring fed pool which is super cold year round).
 
The Houston Children's Museum is wonderful...but that's a long drive from El Paso! However, if you ever decide to spend some time in the Bayou City, I'd highly recommend getting a City Pass.

In the El Paso area, I'd be planning trips to Big Bend National Park, as well as Guadalupe Mountains NP and Carlsbad Caverns.
I'm not sure if you are familiar with Elegant Word Art by Bethany (Bethany Harty), but she's lives in El Paso...you might hook up with her online and ask her about the area. Her family's been stationed there for a few years.
 
dgreenshield said:
We live in Houston...here are my suggestions:


There is a place in north tx that has dinosaur tracks (I can't remember the state park name right now) it is good for camping
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It's Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose. I haven't been there, but Dinosaur World is just outside of it and we've been there. It was great for the kids. I don't think I'd enjoy it as a couple. I did a page about Dinosaur World here. :D
 
dgreenshield said:
We live in Houston...here are my suggestions:

Texas Hill Country
Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels- huge super fun water park! Check out Gruene Hall, Natural bridge caverns, outlet malls ect.
Texas State Fair- Dallas Area
South Padre Island
Houston- space center houston, galveston, museums, parks, Houston Livestock show and rodeo.
San Antonio- Fiesta Tx, Seaworld, Riverwalk, Alamo
There is a place in north tx that has dinosaur tracks (I can't remember the state park name right now) it is good for camping

Oh I forgot! On the way west, check out Buckees! Its a gas station/store/restaurant on the way to San Antonio. They have tons of restrooms and are a Texas must stop location when driving from city to city.

When you cross into Tx from LA, I assume that is the direction you are coming from, stop at the tourism rest stop. They have everything you will need to plan trips in the state.
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Dinosaur Valley State Park is the one with the dinosaur tracks, our boys loved it! I would also recommend visiting Fredericksburg. It's fun to stroll down the main street and shop, plus there are several wineries to visit.

New Braunsfels is a great place for a short vacation - the waterpark is great, plus there are a couple rivers where you can go tubing or rafting. We did many family vacations there when I was little :)
 
AmberK said:
Are you moving to El Paso? Im in Austin which is not off I-10 but San Antonio is and you should definitely stop and go to the Riverwalk! Eat some yummy Mexican food and have a margarita. :) San Antonio also has Fiesta Texas and Sea World. Oh they have a zoo too but I haven't been to the San Antonio zoo in like 15 years.

A little outside of San Antonio is New Braunfels and Schlitterbahn waterpark is a lot of fun!

Austin doesn't have the huge major attractions like Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio does but it is still a great town! If you like live music then its the place to be- although Im not into that so cant really recommend any places to go other than say head downtown to 6th street to check out the bar scene. Austin has the Bob Bullock History Museum, The State Capitol, Zilker Park and Barton Springs Pool (a natural spring fed pool which is super cold year round).
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Yes, we are moving to El Paso. We're stopping overnight in San Antonio and I'm hoping to get to explore the riverwalk then.
 
I can't believe I forgot to mention Buc-ee's - gotta see the beaver :thumbup:

dgreenshield said:
We live in Houston...here are my suggestions:

Texas Hill Country
Schlitterbahn in New Braunfels- huge super fun water park! Check out Gruene Hall, Natural bridge caverns, outlet malls ect.
Texas State Fair- Dallas Area
South Padre Island
Houston- space center houston, galveston, museums, parks, Houston Livestock show and rodeo.
San Antonio- Fiesta Tx, Seaworld, Riverwalk, Alamo
There is a place in north tx that has dinosaur tracks (I can't remember the state park name right now) it is good for camping

Oh I forgot! On the way west, check out Buckees! Its a gas station/store/restaurant on the way to San Antonio. They have tons of restrooms and are a Texas must stop location when driving from city to city.

When you cross into Tx from LA, I assume that is the direction you are coming from, stop at the tourism rest stop. They have everything you will need to plan trips in the state.
Click to expand...
 
The drive between San Antonio and El Paso is loooong! In and around El Paso, if you have the opportunity get a guided tour of Heuco Tanks, do it, really awesome. There are some great day trips in that neck of the woods.
 
I've lived in Texas all my life.

Austin, the state capital, is a little over a hour from San Antonio. You can catch IH-35 from IH-10. You need to at least drive by the University of Texas at Austin, which is a little north of downtown. The Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library is at the edge of the campus.

If you're into astronomy, the McDonald Observatory is in the Davis Mountains, which I believe is fairly close to IH-10. I'd love to go there some day. I hear it's wonderful.

Good luck on your trip! All the suggestions you've gotten are awesome. I hope you are able to eat some Mexican food. You also need to try to get some Texas barbecue!
 
Well you need to come see me of course! :D I totally agree about stopping at Buc-ee's though - definitely an I-10 must-see. Keep an eye out for their billboards along the way too - they're rather entertaining, haha.

If you're into sweets at all, Crave Cupcakes in Houston is amazing. It's one of our must-stops whenever we go there.

San Antonio of course has the Riverwalk, Alamo and all that jazz. Although I'd say the mexican food is really the highlight around here. But then, we love food, haha. If you're looking to try Texas BBQ, our favorite is Coopers in New Braunfels which isn't too far off of I-10. It's only about 15-20 minutes from the east side of San Antonio to there on I-35.

West of San Antonio to El Paso is a LONG drive and there's really not a whole lot out there. Are you guys planning on driving through or are you looking to stop along the way? We drove all the way from San Antonio thru El Paso to Albuquerque in one day so you could definitely push through if there wasn't anywhere you wanted to stop. Then you could spend more time in the more eastern part of Texas where there's more to see.
 
Texas girl here and lived in the hill country near and around Austin/San Antonio all of my life. We now live in San Antonio. Everyone has already mentioned great places so I don't really have any to add other than to say that Schlitterbahn is a definite place you need to go at some point. We had season passes there every year when the kids were little and we were there about 4 days a week - all day long. It is awesome and you get to bring in your own food/coolers! That is a major, major plus so you don't have to buy expensive "theme park" food. The river walk is very neat to see but just to prepare you - the pathways are small and can get crowded. It can be a lot of walking if you have little ones and strollers are nearly impossible to navigate it at times and places. That being said, it is worth it to go to see.

I thought is was so cool to read everyone suggesting San Antonio as a place to visit only because living in this area all of my life I guess I take it for granted. But, I can see where this city is a big attraction. There is lots to do.
 
Do any of you live close to San Saba? My husband's family was from there before they migrated to California back in the late 20's and early 30's. He wants to plan for a quick trip to San Saba sometime next year. The geneaology bug has hit him!
 
OK, how to say this...the Alamo is great, historical, etc...but we definitely prefer the other missions in San Antonio :) If you have time (or plan another trip that way), I'd recommend visiting the other missions in SA...and if you are exploring, head to Goliad and tour that one as well (we usually stop there when we are heading to the Rockport/Corpus area)
 
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I'm watching this thread and taking notes as we are moving to El Paso in January. We're excited about our move and can't wait to visit Texas!
 
Nettio said:
Well you need to come see me of course! :D I totally agree about stopping at Buc-ee's though - definitely an I-10 must-see. Keep an eye out for their billboards along the way too - they're rather entertaining, haha.

If you're into sweets at all, Crave Cupcakes in Houston is amazing. It's one of our must-stops whenever we go there.

San Antonio of course has the Riverwalk, Alamo and all that jazz. Although I'd say the mexican food is really the highlight around here. But then, we love food, haha. If you're looking to try Texas BBQ, our favorite is Coopers in New Braunfels which isn't too far off of I-10. It's only about 15-20 minutes from the east side of San Antonio to there on I-35.

West of San Antonio to El Paso is a LONG drive and there's really not a whole lot out there. Are you guys planning on driving through or are you looking to stop along the way? We drove all the way from San Antonio thru El Paso to Albuquerque in one day so you could definitely push through if there wasn't anywhere you wanted to stop. Then you could spend more time in the more eastern part of Texas where there's more to see.
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Uhm, we're overnighting in SA and then straight to El Paso the next day. Meeting you is a MUST that weekend!
 
NeverendingJen said:
that's awesome! I can't wait, how cool will that be. I think we're going to live off post, are you looking at on or off?
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We would like to live on post mostly for the convenience, but if it's not available, we'll gladly go off post. I'm keeping my eye on rentals already. Are you going to rent or buy?
 
dailydwellin said:
We would like to live on post mostly for the convenience, but if it's not available, we'll gladly go off post. I'm keeping my eye on rentals already. Are you going to rent or buy?
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we'll rent. while this is most likely our twilight tour, we're not intending to live there forever. I think we'll be off post so we can have a 3 bedroom instead of hte two we'd get on post.
 
NeverendingJen said:
I think we'll be off post so we can have a 3 bedroom instead of hte two we'd get on post.
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Yeah, we've always lived off post because with only 2 of us, I think we get a bit screwed with the on post housing process. Here in San Antonio we have a 4 bedroom with a loft for less than what we'd pay for a 2 bedroom on post. I'd guess Ft Bliss might be the same.
 
Nettio said:
Yeah, we've always lived off post because with only 2 of us, I think we get a bit screwed with the on post housing process. Here in San Antonio we have a 4 bedroom with a loft for less than what we'd pay for a 2 bedroom on post. I'd guess Ft Bliss might be the same.
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That's smart! I think they're all pretty much the same.

Jen - Have you been looking at the AHRN site for rentals in El Paso? That's the site we went though for our last PCS and it helped a ton.
 
dailydwellin said:
That's smart! I think they're all pretty much the same.

Jen - Have you been looking at the AHRN site for rentals in El Paso? That's the site we went though for our last PCS and it helped a ton.
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yeah, thats where we got our current place from, lol. I've got several I am eying and hoping they are still available when we get there
 
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